3 Steps you can follow to become a better artist Today!

“Every artist was first an amateur” Ralph Waldo Emerson, Lecturer and Poet.

Do you want to become a better artist? If you are reading this chances are you do. Maybe you are just starting out in your art learning path or you are a veteran that may have just hit a plateau in your art skills. Regardless of where you are in your artistic skills there are many things you can do to improve your craft. ​So what are some steps you can take to improve your skills? Let's explore three things you can start doing today to become a better artist.

Study the work of other artists

A great way to improve your skills is to study the work of other artists. You would be surprised at how much you can learn by simply looking at what other people are doing. The fact is, most artists like to share their work and a lot of times they also enjoy sharing their process. Analyzing other artists techniques can greatly improve the way you approach your own art. Start emulating the work of artists that you want your work to be like. Do you want to be the best comic artist in your city? Well then look at what the best comic artists in your city are doing; this will help you greatly in getting closer to where they are. Do you want to be one of the best 3D artists out there; hang around online in the places where those people gather. A good source for 3D art inspiration is Artstation or the Polycount forums. The best way to improve your art is to study the work of the people who already are at the place you want to be. By hanging out in the places where the pros hangout you give yourself the opportunity to get advice from them.

​Practice Consistency

It's not a mystery that the best artists are usually the ones that have been doing art for a long time. You don't just suddenly start drawing and become the best at it overnight. One of the best ways to improve your art is to practice on a consistent basis. This does not mean that you have to make a finished drawing, painting, or 3D model every day. One of the most effective ways to improve is to develop a schedule for when you do art. As a 3D artist myself, I have found the most effective way to do this is to schedule a 30 to 60 minute session a week. I usually spend 30 to 60 minutes on a weekend doing 3D art on what I call "speed modeling". The goal of this session is not necessarily to make the best work possible, but to make the best work possible on the scheduled time; in this case a 60 minute session. During a session I try, as much as I can, to get a piece to an almost finished state; without any polish off course. After doing this on a consistent basis I noticed that I started finishing 3D models faster and also noticed an improvement on my work. It is important that when you do something like this that you create work that interests you. If you don't the activity will eventually become insufferable and something you hate doing. You should also not do it so often that it begins to feel like work, once that happens the joy of doing it will fade away.

Teach Others​

You may be thinking , I just starting learning art myself so how can I start teaching others. Sure, if you just made your first drawing ever than you should probably wait on this. Believe it or not , if you have been doing art for at least a few months you should be ready to teach others, whether in person or online. So why would teaching others make you a better artist? Because you will do anything in your power to appear as someone who knows what they're doing. If you are teaching others, chances are you don't want to make a fool out of yourself. Having to teach others will force you to go out of your way to learn as much as you can before you teach something to someone. Teaching others online is easy, the simplest way to do so is to create a YouTube channel with lessons on how you do your art and why you think it's effective. Other ways of teaching include sharing your process in art forums, a personal blog, etc. Many people will see your work and process and either learn from it or give you feedback, which is also a great way to improve your art.

These are three things you can start doing today that will help you greatly improve on your art. There are also other resources that will help you improve such as art books, online videos,etc.

What do you think? Do you have any tips to share? where are you in your artistic journey?